The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1887-06-10
THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE,
THE GREATEST THOROUGHFARE
IN THE UNITED STATES,
And, from q Human Standpoint,
the Most Interesting In
the World.
ESPECIAL TO TIE APPEAL.l


NKw YeBK, June 9.-The official
figures, which show the volume and
the growth Il The travel over the New
York aud Brooklyn bridge covering
have Just been prepared, its fodrth an
niversary having Just passed. During
the "rush" hours il has been the great
est thorouRhfare in America. Cars fol-
low one another az closely as they can
be run in safety, the foot path ia
densely crowded and the roadway is a
moving mass Of vehicles. Durir &
1884 So S,828 200 pasrengsrs crossed
in the cars and 1902 700 used the
promenade, making total OF 1890
900. In 1888 $50, 1851 $50 people
used the cars, $685. 02 the prom
enade, making a total Of 21,729,-
S7l. In 1SS6-S7, "a, 475, 1852 travelled on
the railroad and 2,964,680 took the
promenade, making total OF ~ ,44O,'
OO4. This shows an average daily pas
sage Of people during the last yeal
(olher than those who go In vehicles.
Of 75,l78. The number Of daily pas
Bages over It Excluding those who &c
in vehicles) during the last three year,
has been
1885. 1856. 1861
1856. 69,507. 76,l7S.
the average increase of daily travel
over the preceding year was in 1885. SO,
24,631; in 1885 81, 1851. The total
number Of people that have used the
promenade since the opening Of the
bridge (lnclDding the experimental
monlhs) is 10 983,3l9. The railroad
has carried during the same period,
"a, 800, making total OF 80,075, AIS.
The fare for pedestrians is one cent,
and for passengers in the cars three
cents. The May receipts this year
were the largest In the history OF the
bridge, amountingt to $4,000.
Two-thirds of the travel over the
bridge is between the hours OF 7 to 10
am. and 8 to 7 pm. 1t consists Ct
that great army Of workipgmen, women
and children, who have their homes
in Brooklyn, and 10 to the metropolis
to their daIy toll.
The foot walk is exceedingly popu-
lar, particularly in fne weather, and
when the toll is removed from it, as
will be the case next year, the travel
across the long narrow csuseway will
receive an additional impetus. Even
now during the hot nights of the sum-
mer 1t affords q delightful resting
place to hundreds and hundreds OF
poor women from the tenement dis
tricts, who may be seen at any hour OF
the night resting at the towers or
strolling across the structure with
their pale faced little ones in their
arms.
The Brooklyn bridge, take 1t all in
all, is undoubtedly the most remsrka-
BILE thorOughfare in the world. Ger
tainly among the bridges 1t is without
q rival In some aspects of human in
terests For example, it affords en-
ployment which yields comfortable
living to AGO persons, 80 of them serv.
ing as q police force, the rest being
painters, day laborers and the railroad
force. Nor has there been many idle
moments since 1t was first opened.
The number Of hours run by the steel
cable that propels the cars during the
past year has been 7248, and the total
delay the whole year was only @
hours and 81 minutes, which Is an av-
erage OF st seconds per hour.
The question has again and again
been asked, WI at 10 the limit Of the
capacity OF the bridge? When Chief
Engineer Marlin Is asked this ques-
ton he smiles and Gays: eve have
not nearly reached it YETI" Certainly
Just as soon "a there Ia any over
crowding or d fliCulty in handling the
crowds, some ingenious arrangement
is sure to be Iesoried to by which the
difficulty can be removed. A new
system OF switching the cars will be
adopted this fail by which very much
increased car acity will be gained, and
then the procession Of human beings
that pass and repass the great sus.
pended highway will take a fresh
start. In Whist congestion of all traffic
this will eod, or how soon that con-
ge3tion will come 10 pass, 1t Is quite
impossible to say, or by what efforts
OF engineering genius Brooklyn aud
New York will eventually be united
we are equally ignorant, but one
thing ia certain-mors bridges will
have to be built, and that before very
long.
Sill that nothing like the limit OF a
great bridges capacity has yet been
reached, may he seen by comparing
the travel with the travel over two
Of tbs great bridges in the heart Of
London over the Thames. The foot
passengers passing London bridge lin
one day number 1885, and the We
hicles q 466; passengers per day
across BlrcStisr's bridge over the
Thames 81, lS4 vehicles IA ,5S4.
The following comparison shows
that the greatest American bridge
thoroughfate Is yet far behind the two
greatest in the wotld's metropolis.
Those who pa's In vehicles are not
counted in the following table OF daily
passage over:
London Bridge. Black iiar,. Brooklyn.
1885. S7,lSi. 75,l7S.
This was the daily average during
the whole year over the Brooklyn
bridge, the daily average now being
much larger. The comparative figures
prepared by I'll iials at the end OF the
bridge year have not been published
in New York or elsewhere.